Manuals, DLLs, and Example Drivers

  • The following sections provide links for the manuals, dynamic link libraries (DLLs), and example driver files for  Version 2 (2012), Version 3 (2015), and Version 3.1 (2017) of PM4Sand. Version 1 (2010) was not implemented as a DLL, so is not listed below.

Version 2

  • Boulanger, R. W., and Ziotopoulou, K. (2012). “PM4Sand (Version 2): A sand plasticity model for earthquake engineering applications.”  Report No. UCD/CGM-12/01, Center for Geotechnical Modeling, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of California, Davis, CA, May, 100 pp. (Revision 1 posted July 2012 – Boulanger_Ziotopoulou_Sand_Model_CGM-12-01_2012_rev1)
  • Code: modelpm4s003.dll (Compiled 5/15/2012; Revision 1 compiled 7/12/2012; zip file). This code was compiled using Microsoft Visual C++ 2005 for use with FLAC 7. It will not work with earlier or later versions of FLAC. Place the dll in the Program Files (x86)\Itasca\FLAC700\Exe32\plugins\models directory.
  • Example drivers set #1: Project file simulates 5 direct simple shear elements loaded at different uniform cyclic stress ratios (CSR). The resulting plot of CSR versus number of cycles to reach three different failure criteria can be used for calibrating the model to a target cyclic resistance ratio (CRR).
  • Example drivers set #2: Project file simulates 5 direct simple shear elements subjected to monotoninc or cyclic shear strains. This file can be used to perform drained or undrained monotonic loading simulations, or to perform cyclic strain-controlled loading for computing modulus reduction and damping relationships.
  • The above two project files (and corresponding fish files) can be downloaded here (zip file).

Version 3

  • Boulanger, R. W., and Ziotopoulou, K. (2015). “PM4Sand (Version 3): A sand plasticity model for earthquake engineering applications.”  Report No. UCD/CGM-15/01, Center for Geotechnical Modeling, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of California, Davis, CA, March, 112 pp. (Boulanger_Ziotopoulou_PM4Sand_Model_CGM-15-01_2015)
  • FLAC 7.0 Code: modelpm4s003.dll (Compiled 3/11/2015; zip file). This code was compiled using Microsoft Visual C++ 2005 for use with FLAC 7.0. It will not work with earlier or later versions of FLAC. Place the dll in the \Itasca\FLAC700\Exe32\plugins\models directory.
  • FLAC 8.0 Code: modelpm4sand005_64.dll (Compiled 2/21/2017; zip file). This code was compiled using Microsoft Visual Studio Community 2015 C++  for use with FLAC 8.0. It will not work with earlier versions of FLAC. Place the dll in the \Itasca\FLAC800\exe64\plugins\models directory.
  • Example drivers set #1 and set #2 for Version 3 are slightly different from those described above for Version 2. These two project files (and corresponding fish files) can be downloaded here (zip file).

Version 3.1

  • Revisions to PM4Sand in Version 3.1, relative to Version 3, were minor. They included: (1) recompiling to run with FLAC 8.0 (Itasca 2016), (2) changes to the logic for input of secondary parameters, (3) a minor correction to the algorithm for post-liquefaction reconsolidation strains, (4) renaming of some tracking variables, and (5) a modification to the initialization scheme that prevents a problem that can arise with the use of the static solver during model initialization. For boundary value problem simulations not involving post-liquefaction reconsolidation, these revisions have been found to have no effect on simulation results.
  • Boulanger, R. W., and Ziotopoulou, K. (2017). “PM4Sand (Version 3.1): A sand plasticity model for earthquake engineering applications.”  Report No. UCD/CGM-17/01, Center for Geotechnical Modeling, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of California, Davis, CA, March, 114 pp. (Boulanger_Ziotopoulou_PM4Sand_v31_CGM-17-01_2017_rev3.pdf)
  • FLAC 8.0 Code: modelpm4sand005_64.dll (Compiled 11/28/2017; zip file). This code was compiled using Microsoft Visual Studio Community 2015 C++  for use with FLAC 8.0. It will not work with earlier versions of FLAC. Place the dll in the \Itasca\FLAC800\exe64\plugins\models directory.
  • A set of example drivers (project files and corresponding fish files) to assist with calibration can be downloaded here (zip file).

Version 3.2

  • Revisions to PM4Sand in Version 3.2, relative to Version 3.1, include: (1) a revision to the initial back-stress ratio initialization routine, (2) a modification to the elastic shear modulus equation, and (3) a recalibration of the Fsedmin secondary parameter as well as a proper renaming of its input string for FLAC from [F_sed] to [F_sedmin]. These changes do not significantly affect the general features of model responses, but do affect responses for a given set of calibration parameters. Therefore, calibrations using PM4Sand Version 3.1 need to be revised when switching to Version 3.2.
  • Boulanger, R. W., and Ziotopoulou, K. (2022). “PM4Sand (Version 3.2): A sand plasticity model for earthquake engineering applications.”  Report No. UCD/CGM-22/02, Center for Geotechnical Modeling, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of California, Davis, CA, March, 112 pp. (Boulanger_Ziotopoulou_PM4Sand_v3.2_CGM-22-02.pdf)
  • FLAC 8.1 Code: modelpm4sand005_64.dll (Compiled 06/20/2022; zip file). This code was compiled using Microsoft Visual Studio Community 2015 C++  for use with FLAC 8.1. It will not work with earlier versions of FLAC. Place the dll in the \Itasca\FLAC810\exe64\plugins\models directory.
  • A slightly revised set of example drivers (project files and corresponding fish files) to assist with calibration can be downloaded here (zip file).
    • Example driver #1: Monotonic loading in direct simple shear  (drained or undrained)
    • Example driver #2: Uniform cyclic stress ratio loading in direct simple shear (drained or undrained)
    • Example driver #3: Strain-controlled loading in direct simple shear to obtain G/Gmax and damping values (drained or undrained)
    • Example driver #4: Post-liquefaction reconsolidation in direct simple shear

Other Resources

  • In order to assist PM4Sand users with calibration, we have created Python scripts that produce multiple PM4Sand drivers for different loading paths, batch files for running them in FLAC, and post-processing codes for plotting all the figures in the manual. These can be useful for users who want to assess the sensitivity of responses to parameters more efficiently or assess the performance of the overall model as they change secondary parameters. These can be found here, alongside with instructions and annotations. These files are intended for advanced users of Python and PM4Sand and should be used with caution.
  • Notepad++ is an excellent tool for editing fish files in Windows OS. The following xml file (userDefineLang.zip), prepared by Jose Ugalde, allows Notepad++ to recognize the fish language and highlight the text accordingly. This file can be placed in the user’s hidden folder Username\AppData\Roaming\Notepad++ , and it will show up under the Language tab as a “flac” option.
  • Sublime3 is another excellent text editor for code and markup compatible with both Windows and MacOS. The following repository (https://github.com/katerinaziot/FLAC-Tools) contains a scripting and autocompletion syntax language for Sublime prepared by Katerina Ziotopoulou. Installation instructions can be found under the ReadMe file of the repo.